Music is served … - Irish American News

January 2006 IRISH AMERICAN NEWS 27Artillery of the Louisiana NationalGuard. The 141st Field Artillerywas formed as the WashingtonArtillery in 1838 and first foughtwith Zachary Taylor in the MexicanWar. During the Civil War it was,arguably, the most famous artilleryunit of Robert E. Lee’s Armyof Northern Virginia. On Dec. 13,1862, its guns, frowning down fromMarye’s Heights in Fredericksburg,Va., helped repulsethe desperate chargethat included the 69thand the rest of theIrish Brigade.The 156thInfantry’s historypredates Louisiana’sstatehood,and it has somethingin common with the69th: There is an Irishelement to its origins. The156th traces its history to the“The Regiment of City Militia” ofNew Orleans, organized in 1769 bythe governor of Louisiana province.The province was then under Spain’scontrol, and the man whom theSpanish had appointed governor ofthe province was General Don Alejandro“Bloody” O’Reilly, born inBaltrasna, County Meath, in 1723.The 69th has often invoked itsspiritual connection to the Irish Brigadethat served in the French armyfor 100 years preceding the FrenchRevolution. In the Union Army,Irish Brigade commander ThomasFrancis Meagher at times used thebattle cry, “Remember Fontenoy,”referring to the greatest victory ofFrance’s Irish Brigade.Spain also had a long history ofIrishmen serving in its army, extendinginto the 19th century. One ofthe most famous was the HiberniaRegiment, formed in 1710. O’Reillyserved in that regiment, joining itas a cadet while still a child. Heeventually rose so high in the esteemof the Spanish government that hewas sent to retake the Louisianaprovince in 1769, following a revoltthere by French residents. This hedid, earning his sobriquet, “Bloody,”by executing six of the insurrectionleaders, and forming militiaregiments to help control the region.Thus, through him, the 156th canclaim connection to the Irish regimentsof Spain.The 156th has continued on insome form. In the Civil War, itbecame the 2nd and 3rd LouisianaVolunteer Infantry regiments.The 2nd fought in allmajor battles of Lee’sArmy from the springof 1862 throughthe war’s end. Innearly every one,the soldiers of the69th were fightingon the otherside. That includedMalvern Hill, wherethe two units fought ondifferent parts of the field.In the end, 10 men of the69th lost their lives in Iraq, and 9soldiers from Louisiana died whileserving with the 69th. Many of theLouisiana guardsmen were fromthe New Orleans area. In the wakeof Hurricane Katrina, they foundthemselves more worried abouttheir friends and family at homethan about their own well-being. Thetown of Houma, which lost threeof its sons in one day in January inIraq, has been hosting refugees fromNew Orleans.The days when soldiers from Louisianaand New York were trying to killeach other is a part of history. The menof these storied military units are nowcomrades who fought, and in somecases, died, together, on the roadsand fields in Iraq. These former foes’service represents yet a new chapterin American military history.From traditional to contemporary,five Irish women put a moderntwist on Celtic sounds.CD AND DVD AVAILABLE NOWFor details visitwww.CelticWoman.comTHE NEWCONCERTPHENOMENONDIRECT FROMIRELAND IS ONTOUR THISSPRING!Celtic Woman PresentsThe See It On PBS TM logois a trademark of thePublic Broadcasting Service.© 2004. All rights reserved.© 2006 Manhattan RecordsAvailable in stores now —the solo albums from Chloë, Órla, Lisa, Máiréad, and Méav!